One of casino heist trio gets prison

A woman who pleaded guilty to helping rob Cher-Ae Heights Casino of nearly $200,000 last year has been sentenced to prison by a federal court in San Francisco.

According to court documents, Emily Katherine Weitzel was sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston on Nov. 9.

Weitzel recently entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to violate federal law, theft of over $1,000 from an American Indian casino, interstate transportation of stolen money and money laundering.

A second defendant, Daniel Ivan Porter, entered guilty pleas to some of the same allegations but has yet to be sentenced. A third alleged plotter, Peter Daniel Collins, has not entered a plea and is still in custody.

The three are accused of working together to pull off the elaborate heist, complete with an inside man and disguises.

Porter was a security guard at the casino, and on the night of the robbery, according to court documents, he worked the room that monitored the cameras.

At one point he went to the casino floor where he dropped a vault key, which was picked up by Weitzel. Weitzel then went outside and gave the key to Collins.

Collins went into the casino bathroom, where he changed and then sneaked into the vault, allegedly stealing $198,000.

In the following weeks, all three were tracked down and arrested, with police finding $151,495 under Collins' and Weitzel's shared bed in Washington. A new Ford Mustang was also found in the driveway.

Illston ordered the money and the car to be handed over to Lexington Insurance Co., the casino's insurance company.

Weitzel was ordered to a prison in California, and must report to begin serving her sentence by 2 p.m. on Jan. 11.